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Gun violence is a daily occurrence in the United States and on Wednesday an advocacy group for gun control made a point and a few headlines by announcing 10 states, Indiana included, have higher rates of deaths by firearms than by motor vehicles.
The Violence Policy Center in Washington, D.C. released its statistics, one of which puts Indiana’s gun deaths at 11.44 per 100,000 people for 2009. Indiana’s motor vehicle death rate was 11.13 people per 100,000 for 2009, according to the VPC.
Why these numbers are being compared is also part of the story. VPC states that efforts in making cars and roadways safer and enforcing traffic laws, including those against drinking and driving, have greatly reduced highway deaths. The VPC would like a federal government safety effort for guns that mimics what is done for vehicles.
The VPC argument is suspect only because the functioning of firearms is not usually the cause of deaths by firearms. Goshen did have a child killed accidently not too long ago when her father dropped an outdated military-style handgun that did not include modern safety features that block firing pins from striking bullets when a gun is dropped. So, it does make sense to have a regulation ensuring firearms being made today have safety features that prevent them from accidental discharge when dropped. But such accidents are very rare.
What are usually the causes of death by firearms are their availability to people who want to commit suicide, or criminals obtaining them through theft or illegal purchases. To buy a firearm legally the buyer has to fill out a federal questionnaire and then be cleared through the federal criminal database before they can take the gun home.
What we see as the big problems with firearms are their improper and unsafe use, as evidenced by a teen shooting himself in the foot Tuesday in Goshen, and their improper storage.
Gun owners should know best the dangers of their weapons and these owners should make sure that when their weapons are not in their immediate possession they should be locked away in a safe place, preferably a gun safe. Ammunition should be stored and locked in a separate place. Keys for both storage areas should be kept secure from children.
All gun owners have a responsibility to make sure their weapons are not easily stolen or available to curious children.
These simple solutions would reduce the number of guns that are stolen and moved along on the black market until they end up in the hands of people who are willing to use firearms to commit crimes and take lives.
Opinion
Gun owners should safely store weapons
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